WHO HINDERS MINISTER OHANYAN
HAKOB BADALYAN
Story from Lragir.am News:
Published: 10:50:29 – 07/02/2012
“Non-combat deaths continue to plague the army and a related pattern
of ‘hazing’ (the bullying or humiliation of conscripts), abuse and
other unacceptable behaviour has sparked concern over a breakdown in
military discipline and proper command conduct,” state the experts of
Oxford Analytica. They note that this may subvert the military reform,
as well as affect the balance of forces in the region.
At the same time, the British experts note the existence of two wings
in the armed forces. One is the wing that supports reforms, systemic
change, with Minister Seiran Ohanyan at its head. The other wing is
the so-called conservative wing of the representatives of the old
generation who oppose reforms.
The fact that the plight in the army has appeared in the focus of an
international analytical center is evidence that the armed forces
of Armenia are more than just an official occasion for Armenia to
feed the Armenians with patriotic pathos. The Armenian forces in the
region have more serious tasks and mission than just being a dried
butterfly between the pages of the textbook of patriotism.
In Armenia this must be recognized in a broad social and political
scope to shape an attitude to the army.
However, it is also obvious that instead of generating this
understanding the Armenian government does everything it can to
keep the army away from this understanding and keeping it as a mere
subject of toasts. The reason is that the main mission of the army is
to act as a tool to support the government of Armenia, either through
physical deployment or propaganda.
At least, the stance of official Yerevan does not allow supposing
the opposite. And this continues to take lives of young citizens of
Armenia. To measure this with statistics is equal to insanity.
The British experts state that the so-called conservative wing in the
armed forces hinders the defense minister Seiran Ohanyan and the new
generation of military officers to carry out successful reforms. The
British experts wonder whether President Sargsyan will support the
minister of defense to face this serious challenge.
The British experts do not specify who the representatives of the
conservative wing are. Meanwhile, it is high time to name these
people. Who are these people, what division are they in, who opposes
to the minister, and whom does Serzh Sargsyan’s silence support?
This is certainly an issue for Minister Ohanyan to address, rather than
the British experts. It is obvious that he has become the target in the
tragedies happening in the army. And it is something normal because
Seiran Ohanyan is the minister of defense and he is responsible for
the lives of the young conscripts.
However, it is also clear that the army has its structure with
important divisions, such as the General Staff which is responsible
for the operations of the army. However, the responsibility of the
General Staff is never brought up. And the chief of the General Staff,
presently Yuri Khachaturov, is appointed by the head of state.
Consequently, the problem is there. Does Khachaturov hinder Ohanyan?
If yes, why does Ohanyan fail to express himself and resort to public
support to force Serzh Sargsyan to carry out a reshuffle? If not,
it is not true that Seiran Ohanyan is the leader of the reformist
wing in the army. Because if the General Staff and the ministry of
defense are not opponents regarding the reforms, it is difficult to
imagine what can subvert the success of these reforms.
It is possible that Seiran Ohanyan is restrained by Serzh Sargsyan
who is reluctant to start a reshuffle on the eve of the elections and
enter into a conflict with the generals ridding of which is a vital
need for the army.
The British experts think that Serzh Sargsyan runs a risk anyway
because unsolved problems in the army may mobilize a great number of
forces in the pre-election stage, from right nationalists to liberal
democrats.
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